Kristaps Porzingis shares notable regret about Knicks tenure

Apr 5, 2022; Minneapolis, Minnesota, USA; Washington Wizards center Kristaps Porzingis (6) warms up before the game against the Minnesota Timberwolves at Target Center. Mandatory Credit: David Berding-USA TODAY Sports

The New York Knicks traded Kristaps Porzingis in 2019 amid tension between the player and the organization, but Porzingis thinks things could have gone better at the end as he looks back.

Porzingis admitted Friday that he wishes he had handled the circumstances that led to his Knicks exit in a more mature way. The Washington Wizards forward also admitted he should have given his side of the story then instead of simply teasing it on social media.

“It’s hard to say but yeah looking back now, things could have been done differently for sure,” Porzingis said, via Ian Begley of SNY. “Now that I’m older, smarter and understand what happened back then, it could have been done differently for sure.

“I think what we should have done is come out with our side at that time. Some people advised not to put anything out and focus on Dallas. So that’s what we did at the moment. If there’s only one side, then that’s the truth. We should have said something at that moment. Now it’s okay, it’s in the past. It went how it went. It wasn’t the best way to go about it. Like I said, we could’ve done it differently. But everybody makes mistakes. And New York is New York. It’s crazy, you know.”

The Knicks essentially said at the time that Porzingis wanted out, but Porzingis hinted at behind-the-scenes drama that was going unsaid. Ultimately, we may never know, as the forward does not really seem interested in talking about it anymore.